16.3 Issues in education  (Page 6/12)

The National Center for Education Statistics shows that the quality of the national education system isn’t the only major concern of homeschoolers. While nearly half cite their reason for homeschooling as the belief that they can give their child a better education than the school system can, just under 40 percent choose homeschooling for “religious reasons” (NCES 2008).

To date, researchers have not found consensus in studies evaluating the success, or lack thereof, of homeschooling.

Summary

As schools continue to fill many roles in the lives of students, challenges arise. Historical issues include the racial desegregation of schools, marked by the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka ruling. In today’s diverse educational landscape, socioeconomic status and diversity remain at the heart of issues in education, with programs such as the Head Start program attempting to give students equal footing. Other educational issues that impact society include charter schools, teaching to the test, student loan debt, and homeschooling.

One hot topic is the Common Core State Standards, or the Common Core. The primary controversy over the Common Core, from the standpoint of teachers, parents and students, and even administrators, is not so much the standards themselves, but the assessment process and the high stakes involved

Short answer

Further research

Whether or not students in public schools are entitled to free speech is a subject of much debate. In the public school system, there can be a clash between the need for a safe learning environment and the guarantee to free speech granted to U.S. citizens. You can learn more about this complicated issue at the Center for Public Education. (External Link)

References

CBS News. 2011. “NYC Charter School's $125,000 Experiment.” CBS , March 10. Retrieved December 14, 2011 ( (External Link) ).

Chapman, Ben, and Rachel Monahan. 2012. "Talking Pineapple Question on State Exam Stumps...Everyone!" Retrieved December 12, 2014. ( (External Link) ).

Coleman, James S. 1966. Equality of Educational Opportunity Study . Washington, DC: United States Department of Health, Education, and Welfare.

The Common Core State Standards Initiative. 2014. "About the Standards." Retrieved December 12, 2014. ( (External Link) ).

CREDO, Stanford University. "Multiple Choice: Charter School Performance in 16 States," published in 2009. Accessed on December 31, 2014 ( (External Link) .

Holt, Emily W., Daniel J. McGrath, and Marily M. Seastrom. 2006. “Qualifications of Public Secondary School History Teachers, 1999-2001.” Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics.

Lewin, Tamar. 2011. “College Graduates Debt Burden Grew, Yet Again, in 2010.” The New York Times , November 2. Retrieved January 17, 2012 ( (External Link) ).

Morse et al. v. Frederick , 439 F. 3d 1114 (2007).

National Center for Education Statistics. 2008. “1.5 Million Homeschooled Students in the United States in 2007.” Retrieved January 17, 2012 ( (External Link) ).

PBS. 2000. Wallace Quotes . Retrieved December 15, 2011 ( (External Link) ).

Resnick, Michael A. 2004. “Public Education—An American Imperative: Why Public Schools Are Vital to the Well-Being of Our Nation.”  Policy Research Brief . Alexandria, VA: National School Boards Association.

Saad, Lydia. 2008. “U.S. Education System Garners Split Reviews.” Gallup . Retrieved January 17, 2012 ( (External Link) ).